Cutting Back

With the honeymoon over, dot-coms
in Europe are adopting austerity programs.

By

Cecile Gutscher WSJ.com

Updated Nov. 7, 2000 5:53 p.m. ET

LONDON -- Europe's e-tailers are discarding ambitious business plans and reinventing themselves with an Old Economy spin as their honeymoon with investors comes to an end.

Many of these companies once envisioned simultaneous launches in a dozen countries. But to stay afloat, some have taken drastic steps, resorting to layoffs, deep cuts in advertising budgets and the hiring of old-timers who worry less about image and more about gross...